First Solar, Inc. Announces Second Quarter 2014 Financial Results

Maintain 2014 guidance for EPS of $2.40 to $2.80 and operating cash
flow of $300-$500M

New world record for CdTe cell efficiency at 21.0%

812MWdc of new bookings since Q1. Year to
date bookings of 1,216MWdc

August 05, 2014 04:05 PM Eastern Daylight Time

TEMPE, Ariz.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--First Solar, Inc. (Nasdaq: FSLR) today announced financial results for
the second quarter of 2014. Net sales were $544 million in the quarter,
a decrease of $406 million from the first quarter of 2014. The
sequential decrease in net sales is primarily attributable to achieving
revenue recognition on our Campo Verde project in the prior quarter and
project delays in the second quarter which resulted in the deferral of
some revenue recognition to the second half of the year.

The Company reported a second quarter GAAP earnings per fully diluted
share of $0.04, compared to earnings of $1.10 in the prior quarter. The
decrease in net income compared to the prior quarter was due to the
aforementioned Campo Verde project sale in the first quarter and project
delays, partially offset by lower operating expenses.

Cash and Marketable Securities at the end of the second quarter were
approximately $1.3 billion, a decrease of approximately $30 million
compared to the prior quarter. Cash flows from operations were $118
million in the second quarter.

The company also maintained its full year 2014 earnings per share
guidance of $2.40 to $2.80 and operating cash flow guidance of $300 to
$500 million. This guidance is highly dependent on, among other factors,
the construction progress and sales process related to certain utility
scale power plants. Any changes in expected timing of these activities
would defer earnings and operating cash flow to subsequent fiscal
periods and result in a substantial impact on these guidance targets.

First Solar also announced a new record cell efficiency of 21.0%, which
improves upon the prior record of 20.4% announced earlier this year.
This new record represents a milestone as CdTe cell efficiency now
exceeds the world records for both multi-crystalline silicon and CIGS
thin film technologies.

“While project delays in Q2 resulted in deferring some earnings to later
in the year we remain on track to our financial targets for the year and
reaffirm our full-year 2014 EPS and operating cash flow guidance,” said
Jim Hughes, CEO of First Solar. “In addition I am proud of the execution
by the organization as demonstrated by a new record cell efficiency and
new bookings of over 800MWdc.”

First Solar has scheduled a conference call for today, August 5, 2014 at
4:30 p.m. ET to discuss this announcement. Investors may access a live
webcast of this conference call by visiting http://investor.firstsolar.com/events.cfm.

An audio replay of the conference call will also be available
approximately two hours after the conclusion of the call. The audio
replay will remain available until Monday, August 11, 2014 at 7:30 p.m.
ET and can be accessed by dialing 888-203-1112 if you are calling from
within the United States or 719-457-0820 if you are calling from outside
the United States and entering the replay pass code 8760188. A replay of
the webcast will be available on the Investors section of the Company’s
web site approximately two hours after the conclusion of the call and
remain available for approximately 90 calendar days.

About First Solar, Inc.

First Solar is a leading global provider of comprehensive photovoltaic
(PV) solar systems which use its advanced module and system technology.
The company's integrated power plant solutions deliver an economically
attractive alternative to fossil-fuel electricity generation today. From
raw material sourcing through end-of-life module recycling, First
Solar's renewable energy systems protect and enhance the environment.
For more information about First Solar, please visit www.firstsolar.com.

For First Solar Investors

This release contains forward-looking statements which are made pursuant
to safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform
Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements include statements, among
other things, concerning: our business strategy, including anticipated
trends and developments in and management plans for our business and the
markets in which we operate; future financial results, operating
results, revenues, gross margin, operating expenses, products, projected
costs, warranties, solar module efficiency and balance of systems
("BoS") cost reduction roadmaps, restructuring, product reliability and
capital expenditures; our ability to continue to reduce the cost per
watt of our solar modules; our ability to reduce the costs to construct
photovoltaic ("PV") solar power systems; research and development
programs and our ability to improve the conversion efficiency of our
solar modules; sales and marketing initiatives; and competition. These
forward-looking statements are often characterized by the use of words
such as "estimate," "expect," "anticipate," "project," "plan," "intend,"
"believe," "forecast," "foresee," "likely," "may," "should," "goal,"
"target," "might," "will," "could," "predict," "continue" and the
negative or plural of these words and other comparable terminology.
Forward-looking statements are only predictions based on our current
expectations and our projections about future events. You should not
place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements. We undertake
no obligation to update any of these forward-looking statements for any
reason. These forward-looking statements involve known and unknown
risks, uncertainties, and other factors that may cause our actual
results, levels of activity, performance, or achievements to differ
materially from those expressed or implied by these statements. These
factors include, but are not limited to, the matters discussed in Item
1A: "Risk Factors," of our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended
December 31, 2013, Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q, Current Reports on
Form 8-K and other reports filed with the SEC.

FIRST SOLAR, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES

CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS

(In thousands, except share data)

(Unaudited)

Jun 30, 2014

Dec 31, 2013

ASSETS

Current assets:

Cash and cash equivalents

$

851,346

$

1,325,072

Marketable securities

497,521

439,102

Accounts receivable trade, net

237,924

136,383

Accounts receivable, unbilled and retainage

564,887

521,323

Inventories

385,247

388,951

Balance of systems parts

58,816

133,731

Deferred project costs

312,065

556,957

Deferred tax assets, net

107,265

63,899

Assets held for sale

20,728

132,626

Prepaid expenses and other current assets

134,470

94,720

Total current assets

3,170,269

3,792,764

Property, plant and equipment, net

1,369,659

1,385,084

PV solar power systems, net

48,547

—

Project assets and deferred project costs

1,002,494

720,916

Deferred tax assets, net

245,080

296,603

Restricted cash and investments

370,594

279,441

Goodwill

84,985

84,985

Other intangible assets, net

116,935

117,416

Inventories

124,520

129,664

Other assets

78,932

76,629

Total assets

$

6,612,015

$

6,883,502

LIABILITIES AND STOCKHOLDERS’ EQUITY

Current liabilities:

Accounts payable

$

187,530

$

261,333

Income taxes payable

40,708

6,707

Accrued expenses

294,668

320,077

Current portion of long-term debt

60,838

60,543

Payments and billings for deferred project costs

425,654

642,214

Other current liabilities

201,845

297,187

Total current liabilities

1,211,243

1,588,061

Accrued solar module collection and recycling liability

249,990

225,163

Long-term debt

133,836

162,780

Other liabilities

348,991

404,381

Total liabilities

1,944,060

2,380,385

Commitments and contingencies

Stockholders’ equity:

Common stock, $0.001 par value per share; 500,000,000 shares
authorized; 100,177,488 and 99,506,941 shares issued and outstanding
at June 30, 2014 and December 31, 2013, respectively